Abortion

Regarding abortion the Church has said that it “opposes elective abortion for personal or social convenience,” but allows for exceptions in speciﬁc circumstances. The Church “has not favored or opposed legislative proposals or public demonstrations concerning abortion” and counsels its members “not to submit to, perform, encourage, pay for,or arrange for such abortions.”

“We believe abortions should only be used in conditions of rape, incest, and when the life of the mother is in danger. We also fight with the same vigor for the privileges of the child once they take their first breath. Health care for children, food stamps, free school lunches, and other social programs that help vulnerable children should be fully supported. We also recognize that Democrats have done more to drive down the instances of abortion with legislation than Republicans. Expanding healthcare coverage has a positive impact on the declining instances of abortion. We recognize that abortion is used solely by Republicans as a politicized wedge issue, as nothing has been done to curtail the practice with legislation or pushing cases to the Supreme Court (also controlled by Republican appointed justices).” Courtesy of mormondems.com.

“This is a hard one. Abortion as a means of birth control is wrong. When people choose to engage in sex they choose to possibly become a parent. My husband and I struggled with infertility and are lucky to have the twho children we have, so when I see unwanted, neglected, unloved, uncared for children, it hurts. I support the church’s stance on abortion. I feel that unwanted children who are aborted receive the eternal life anyway.” – Kristin H. from West Jordan, UT

“As a Latter-day Saint, I believe in the sanctity of human life. However while I personally believe in the sanctity of human life, I believe that my religious beliefs should not inﬂuence public policy. I believe in the importance of agency, hence I support the legality of abortion while I disagree with the morality of abortion.” – Crystal Y. from Salt Lake City, Utah

“Abortion is a moral issue, not a political one. The Church has spoken clearly on it and it should not be a topic of political debate among members of the Church.” – Russel D. from Orem, UT

“While I believe that life is also the better choice, I do not believe that it is my choice to make. Forcing my beliefs on someone else does not improve society, but we need to instead focus on the preventive measures that make the need for abortion non-existent. Simply outlawing it misses the point.” – Kyle J. from Salt Lake City, UT

“I don’t believe in abortion except in the case if rape, incest, or if the health of the mother is in danger. The Church is clear on this.” – Chris J. from South Salt Lake, UT

“We respect that members of our party have diverse views about reproductive issues. Decisions about reproduction are best made on an individual basis in accordance with one’s own personal or religious values. Government should not intrude in these most personal decisions. We support sound and comprehensive education regarding human sexuality.” from the Salt Lake County Democratic Party Platform

“I am morally opposed to abortion however I believe that we need to maintain Roe v. Wade – the primary decision regarding this case was the issue of privacy. Before the Roe v. Wade decision we had no expectation of medical privacy – no HIPPA, no medical privacy expectations whatsoever. ” – Danielle B. from Logan

“Like most Mormons, I strongly dislike abortion and I would like to see fewer abortions. The key to fewer abortions, however, isn’t necessarily outright restrictions. If we seriously want to limit abortions then we must support access to education and contraception.” – Adam A. from Bountiful, UT

“Each tiny spark of human life is precious in God’s eyes! Being pro-life means, to me, that I do not support abortion to end a pregnancy a woman believes is ‘inconvenient’, but I will not judge or condemn her or her choice to do so. Some friends confided in me about abortions they had many years ago, and knew that I would not judge them…I showed them love and friendship. In cases of rape, incest, or high health risk, abortion is understandable. I do believe sex ed and birth control should be taught starting in 6th grade and parents have a serious duty to teach their kids sex ed, like I did.” – Jo Lynne from Ogden, UT

“I don’t like the concept of abortion. That being said I think that there are pleny of cases where it is justified, and I do not feel myself worthy by any stretch of the word to judge when it is and isn’t justified. The best answer would be to allow it but require counseling, and very transparent views of the alternatives. Adoption in many cases is a great alternative, one my wife used when she got pregnant at 17. The best answer of all though, is education about contraception, abstinence, and respect. Then the few cases that slip through the cracks can be dealt with accordingly.” – Samuel R. from Logan

“I was disappointed to find that many LDS folks don’t seem to be aware of the Church position on this topic. We could do more. Educate people – Don’t hide the sensitive topics. I mean really present people with all the facts so they can exercise their agency and hopefully prepare for and prevent the tragedy of an unwanted pregnancy or neglected/abandoned child. Encourage and promote life as a choice and show kindness and respect to unmarried teens and women who carry their babies to term and give them up for adoption to loving families who can care for them. If we stop demeaning, humiliating, shaming and scorning unwed mothers, and help them instead – how wonderful! Family planning is a wise thing, seems to be supported by the Church. Why are we not supporting the good things about Planned Parenthood?” – Karen B. from Murray, UT

“Part of separation of church and state.” – Dan D. from North Salt Lake

“My views on this are related to my views of separation of Church and State. I do not think that government should pay for abortions. I do not think that government should try to punish women for having abortions or to punish health care providers who try to prevent women from dying when they have abortions. These and most other consensual sexual issues should be among the rights reserved to the people. The exceptions should be related to violence or coercion. For example it should be against the law for anyone to coerce, or perhaps even to encourage, a woman into having an abortion.” – C. H. W. from Layton, UT

“I personally am totally against abortions in almost every case. I believe we must respect the opinions of others in this personal matter and, through education, help eliminate the need for abortions.” – Doneta G. from Layton, UT

“I support the LDS position personally which includes some important exceptions. I also support a woman’s choice even though I might not agree with this. People have a lot of opinions regarding this. It can get devisive. Mormons often look at this issue as a reason not to be a democrat and often overlook all the good reasons to be one. We need to accept and embrace the diversity of opinions.” – Leroy from Sprinville, UT

“We need to develop more of a culture of responsibility, of stewardship when it comes to protecting life: when one person or group shirks their duty, others need to step up. I believe that women choose abortion because no one else is willing to stand in their right place. If a pregnant woman believes that the child’s father will take his stewardship, she will most likely not choose abortion. If she believes that a good adoption system will take stewardship, she will choose adoption. If she believes she will be able to bring the child to term, with both mother and child healthy, along with means to be self-sufficient, she will trust in the stewardship of the health care, education, and—yes even—the welfare systems and the child will be born. However, when she finds the father absolved of stewardship, when adoption seems difficult, and/or when lawmakers forsake their stewardship to think beyond just the birth of a fetus but it and the family’s whole life, the abortive act seems less perverse in comparison. We must respect life, but realize that there is more than one life involved in the process.” – Brett G. of Centerville, UT